This was our fourth year spending Christmas at sea. We sailed with our two college age sons and found the Sapphire Princess to be a nice place to spend the holidays. Overall, the ship was in very good condition and felt familiar after sailing on Diamond Princess several years ago. We had two rooms, ours a mini-suite and an outside for our sons, both on Emerald deck.

After a very poorly organized luggage drop off system at embarkation where hundreds were forced to wait in pouring rain while the port and Princess personnel got their act together, the balance of embarkation was quick and easy. Our cabins were ready for us, and our steward, Melchor was there to greet us. He did a fine job the entire cruise. We liked the oversized covered balcony and while the decor was a bit tired, with a few carpet spots and some wear, we found the cabin to be very spacious and a great gathering place for the four of us. The boy's outside cabin was spacious with plenty of storage and a decent view around the lifeboats.

Despite the ship sailing full, there were very few times when it seemed crowded. We think Princess ships are very well designed and easy to navigate. As you would expect at Christmas, there were lots of kids on the ship, but they were generally extremely well behaved...no comment on a few of the poorly behaved parents... It seems some people go on cruises to hear themselves complain! Read more